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Josh Allen returned — and later said goodbye — and the defense did what it has done best all season, and then some.

The end result was a convincing 37-14 Wyoming victory over Central Michigan in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Friday in front of an announced crowd of 16,512 at Albertsons Stadium in Boise, Idaho. Not sure if there were that many there, but the majority of the fans there were cheering for the Cowboys — and they had a lot to cheer about.

Are you ready for some football, as in Famous Idaho Potato Bowl football as Wyoming (7-5) takes on Central Michigan (8-4) at 2 p.m. Friday at Albertsons Stadium in Boise, Idaho. The game will be televised on ESPN.

As I’ve done all season with every UW game, here is my No. 1 key for the Cowboys:

Josh Allen

Be offensive: Meaning that the Cowboys must show some consistency in moving the ball and scoring points. For the most part that has lacked against quality opponents this season. This doesn’t mean perfection, but Wyoming must limit the three-and-out possessions, try to be as balanced offensively as possible and finish drives with points. Yeah, a lot depends on who plays quarterback, but whether it is Josh Allen (who will start the game) or Nick Smith, UW must have plans in place for either one — or perhaps both — to succeed. Establishing a run game would be a big-time help. The Cowboys likely will lean on their defense like they have all season, but they need to lean more on the offense in this game.

Here is my Mountain West football power rankings at the end of the regular season.

No. 25 Fresno State (9-3 overall, 7-1 MW): Don’t think anyone saw this coming at the start of the season. The Bulldogs were impressive in a home win over Boise State last week. Now they get to go to Boise for the MW Championship Game. Some reward, huh?

2. San Diego State (10-2, 6-2): Ended the season with a four-game winning streak, and was impressive in doing so. Another thing I bet you didn’t expect at the start of the season: the top two teams in the conference being from the West Division.

3. Boise State (9-3, 7-1): The Broncos had their seven-game winning streak snapped at Fresno State, and also appeared to get beat up physically in that game. Still, Boise State won the rugged Mountain Division and showed it was the best team in the division.

The performance on the field wasn’t good, and the reaction from many fans was even worse.

Wyoming’s 20-17 road loss at San Jose State was far and away the lowest point of the season for the Cowboys as they lost to a team that came into the game with one win (against a FCS foe) and losers of 10 straight. During that losing streak, the Spartans’ closest margin of loss was 11 points.

The offense was poor, although it did move the ball well in the second half with 255 yards after just 102 in the first half. The defense was solid — for the most part. Pretty much a microcosm of the season.